First Trip to Jamaica for my 30th Birthday, just wanted to say hi :)

[Manda81]

Bnewb - thanks very much I certainly am NOT quiet lol and I think it might be very hard to be anything else but myself I think I'll take my chances.
You live there? Jealous!

Clarity - I have to ask because of the eye picture was it you and your husband that wrote the lengthy Trip Report.. if it was I truely enjoyed it in fact found myself peeled to my computer at work glancing over my shoulder as to not get caught by the boss lol You've inspired me to write my own report when I return.

I can say with a lot of confidence that no matter where I go or where I am I think it's up to me to make it what it's going to be and so I'm looking forward to one of the best experiences of my life and to start exactly a week after my birthday

Really appreciate everyones feed back and welcome wishes! If Jamaica is what I expect it to be who knows maybe I'll see some of you on the beach !

Oh I was wondering should I take American funds or should I use Jamaican dollars I'd prefer to use the Jamaican dollar but is American prefered everywhere?

P.S Jerk Lobster at the Best of the West?? :O I'm drooling!

[Ohio_Buckeye_1]

I also welcome you to the board and it sounds like you've really done your homework. If I read your timeline right, you will arrive in Negril on a Sat - so have Sat night, Sunday, and Sunday night there before leaving to St. Elizabeth on Monday.

I'm sure you've read posts that Sat night party is at Seastar Inn - with great buffet, band, and african drummers. It's a great deal, the staff is great, and that would be my suggestion. It's even within walking distance of Rick's, so you could check out sunset at Rick's and just have a drink or two, then walk over to Seastar for dinner buffet and close out the night. Bring your suits, because you'll be allowed to use the pool at Seastar, and by then you'll probably be ready for a dip to cool down between sunset and the start of the party. They have a free shuttle that will take you back to your hotel, but be sure to tip the driver. Even though you have use of a car, I would leave it for this - unless your Jamaican friend wants to be a designated driver.

Sunday you will probably just want to relax at your hotel and explore the surrounding beach area. For Sunday night there are 2 choices - either the beach party at Alfred's (they have great dinners there, too, at great prices) - or the Sunday night beach party at the park by the craft market. Alfred's will have a reggae band and a pretty much 50-50 mix of locals-tourists, while the party at the beach park will be dancehall music and pretty much 90-10 locals-tourists. Being with your friend, you will not have a problem at either place. There will be vendors selling some food at the beach park, as well.

To answer your question about money - either currency is accepted, but you will get better deals if you use Jamaican currency. With dollars, they will still give you change in Jamaican - and the merchant can set whatever rate he wants. I'd suggest using just Jamaican also so that you minimize having to calculate the exchange for both purchases and change. If you've read alot of these posts, I don't need to tell you to exchange money at the cambios or banks - not airport, hotels, restaurants or stores - to get best rates. Make sure to have many small bills on hand - especially once you get out of Negril - smaller places have hard time making change for anything over $500J.

Couple of other tips - you said even the obvious in case you forgot:
Bring SPF30 or higher lotion with you - it's expensive on the island - and be sure to use it. Nothing worse than ruining a planned active vacation by getting burned and having to hide from the sun.
If you haven't already - search the posts for "sand fleas" - so can avoid them at dawn/dusk on the beach.
For your camera - bring plenty of sim cards (again about triple price on the island). Also, I always have 2 spare batteries. Nothing worse than filling all your sim cards, or losing your charge in middle of an activity. You can probably get them cheap, and in time for trip, on ebay.

Other suggestions for not-to-miss food. I know you're not in Negril long enough to hit them all, but here are suggestions.
In Negril - Bourbon Beach on the beach for jerk chicken cooked traditional way over Pimento wood on a grill, not a barrel. Eddie's De Bar on the West End for jerk chicken cooked over a barrel, Canoe Bar for Happy Hour and appetizers, Red Dragon near town center for lunch for best jerk pork in Negril. Taxi drivers will know them all.
In Treasure Beach - Frenchman's Reef has huge, delicious lobsters at great price, when I was there they even had a 2-for-1 incredible deal.
In Montego Bay - you can't go there without hitting The Pork Pit.

[Marko]

Welcome to da Board!

oh to be a newbie again heavy sigh

you goin to have a lot of fun.....great that you have an old friend to show you around.......nobody will say anything

driving around can get a likkle expensive so make sure you two are on the same page in regards to what it will cost you.......
cause there is nuthin like getting a big surprise like a huge bill at the end of the trip..........
so if him lets you pay for da gas etc for the whole trip, that be pretty cool.......
but if him wants to charge you $100US a day to drive you around......you'll need to know that ahead of time.......
better be safe than sorry........

you are doing a lot in a weeks time but it will give you a chance to know where to put your roots down for future trips........

as far as tips......never tell anyone it's your first time to Jamaica.......don't tell the guys where you are staying or when you leaving....
always use J's for currency and don't change the money at the airport or use the money changing guys.......use Cambio's
on the beach you'll have to say "NO" alot.......say it with respect and you won't have any problems......

everyone should try Rick's one time......it is a cultural experience there.........and a great people watching place.....

in a nutshell, don't do anything different than you would at home and just use your common sense......like you have in Cuba....
walking the Beach alone at 3AM or anywhere in Negril that time of the morning is just asking for it.......
though you'll be safe walking around during the day most anywhere in Negril......
everyone will want to be your new friend.......just be careful which friends you choose that reach.......lol

Enjoy!

Cool Runnings, Marko

[Manda81]

Thanks Ohio_Buckeye, I will definitely check out the parties at both locations and it seems as if the concensus is I should check out Rick's at least for a sunset Thanks for all your help and the sand flea suggestion I would have completely forgot about and boy I swear my blood is like sugar to those little buggers lol

I was wondering do you know how much the parties/buffet dinner at SeaStar is ? Is there an admission price for Rick's as well?

I'm very much looking forward to huge Lobster's in Treasure Beach !!!

I'm curious as to why I shouldn't tell "the guys where I'm staying and when I'm leaving" will they harass me? But lucky me I'll have my friend with me the entire time so I assume I wont get too many guys buggin me while I"m there.

Everyone has been such a great help! Thanks again!

Oh I was wondering will I need a convertor for my electrical stuff such as straightener and camera charger.. I'm not sure what the voltage is down there ?

Marko - Thanks for your tips as well I was wondering how much should I budget for gas... There is no way in hell that my friend would ever consider handing me a bill at the end of my stay lmao in fact it would be comical to say the least if he had even tried but of coarse I have already told him that I will be footing the bill for the gas... I'm completely clueless as to how much things cost in Jamaica.. Is a beer 5 dollars at the bar like it is at home? Is spending 30 dollars on a meal average like home? I suppose travelling with a friend this will be a huge advantage that he'll know if someone is trying to rip me off

[cinnni]

Manda, welcome to the board! The cost for the Sat night Seastar buffet is $18. To just go to the buffet and not eat I believe was $5. We had lots of fun there last month!! Rick's does not have an admission, the drinks are overpriced however but I guess ur paying for the experience so as somone suggested earlier....just nurse ur one drink for a while. The divers will be walking around asking for tips as well. It is something to see I think at least once

About not telling people where u are staying thats for safety and harrassment purposes. Tho you do have a male friend with u so it won't be as much of an issue but yes, if you told a guy which hotel u stayed at and he was diggin u it would be likely he'd be hangin around ur hotel waiting. I don't know how much gas is...Bnewb will know but I do know its more expensive then it is here. Beer is not $5 at most places cept maybe ricks or the like. Mixed drinks are STRONG (and yummy) and the frozen drinks are also delicious!! You can eat cheaper(much cheaper) than $30 if y ou choose to eat where the locals do but that will cover ur meals most other places for sure.

Provided you're from the US you do not need a converter however good luck gettin ur hair to stay straightened lol. It's so humid there that I don't even bother trying anymore. I take curl product and lots of pony tail holders and headbands

[Lola]

To clarify, the advice was not to be a quiet person, it was not to feel obligated to answer every question asked.

[Manda81]

I'm from Canada and so our voltage is the same as the states and you had no problems? I thought my friend had told me it was 220 like European but maybe he just meant in his home. Ugh my hair is a disaster if I can't use some sort of electronic hair tamer lol

Cinni - Thanks so much! I like to budget as much as I can so that I know how much to bring I was planning on having about 75,000 JDM for the week, hoping this is going to be enough.

Lola-Thanks for the advice I'll keep that in mind although I have a hard time not addressing everything when asked

[Jim-Donna]

Happy Happy Birthday to YOU~~ Have FUN~~ and be SAFE~~~
We will all be waiting for pictures!

[Michele Beisser]

Greetings Manda !!
I spent my 40th birthday in Negril and I actually had my bday dinner at Best in the West! I love their jerk sauce. I also like Ossie's and 3 Dives jerk too. It's a lot
of fun sampling the jerk from each place and forming your own opinions too. My absolute favorite jerk ever is Scotchies, when u stay in Mobay u should go to
Scotchies. Due to an early morning flight we had to stay in Mobay for one night, we stayed at the Coral Cliff hotel & Casino. The casino is cool to kill some time, it's right on the hip strip across from Margaritaville.
My last trip to Negril I was solo and hung out with my local male friends (just friends) but who cares what other people think?
Just be careful driving around, the JA drivers are kind of crazy!
CoCo is really cool, good choice ! Big beach & good food !
JA or USD it's all good, but remember when u pay in usd u get jmd for change so it's good to know the exchange rate so u don't get ripped off.
As far as live music, you'll be able to find bands playing most nights of the week at different places. I HIGHLY recommend SeaStar Saturday night, the buffet and entertainment ROCK !!!!!
Have a safe trip and b IRIE!!!!!!!!!!!! We'll b looking forward to your trip report, you know that is required to be on this board !!! j/k

[Clarity]

Manda – haha, Thanks! Yes, that was our very lengthy trip report. I really look forward to reading yours when you get back! I’m sure you’re going to see and experience a lot more of insider Jamaica since you’re traveling with a local. You’re going to have such a blast!

Yes, Jerk Lobster @ Best Of the West… so good. I even took a picture so I could drool over it. I still remember pulling the tender pieces of lobster out of the shell and dipping it in the jerk sauce…mmm



I agree that the Seastar has a great buffet and is the place to be on Saturday for the liveshow! I was there in April for the Luciano show, it was a great experience.

And Michele is right about the driving in Jamaica.
Cra-zy